MILWAUKEE (Ticker) -- Chris Mullin's 18-footer with 18 seconds
left snapped a tie and the Indiana Pacers made a pair of big
defensive plays to hold on for an 82-80 victory over the upstart
Milwaukee Bucks.

After Mullin's wide-open jumper, the Pacers turned to defense
for their fourth win in five games. Antonio Davis blocked a
lane jumper by Glenn Robinson, who had 31 points and 10
rebounds.

"It was pretty hectic at the end," said Mullin, who scored nine
points. "We got our opportunity on Antonio's big block. We
knew we had to defend Glenn Robinson, because he's their go-to
guy."

Indiana's Jalen Rose was fouled with six seconds left but missed
both free throws, giving Milwaukee another chance. The Bucks
inbounded to point guard Terrell Brandon, who tried to dribble
through a double-team and lost the ball. Rose recovered and
dribbled out the clock.

The Bucks claimed Robinson was held on their final possession.

"Glenn was held by (Mark) Jackson but we didn't get the call,"
Milwaukee coach George Karl said. "But we shouldn't expect to
get the call, especially against a team like Indiana."

"You can look at the game tape," said Robinson, who made
13-of-22 shots. "It was a mere pick-and-roll. Mark Jackson
grabbed my leg. Why not get a call? It was obvious. You're not
supposed to get away with a call like that."

Reggie Miller scored 20 points for the Pacers (6-3), who moved
into a tie for first place in the Central Division with Atlanta.
Indiana, considered the favorites in the Eastern Conference,
entered the contest one-half game behind Milwaukee (5-3), which
is off to a good start under new coach Karl.

"We got a big block and executed the pick-and-roll," Jackson
said. "The Bucks are a great basketball team with great
shooters and scorers. Fortunately, we came away with the
victory."

The Bucks missed 12 of their last 13 shots and have dropped five
straight meetings with the Pacers. Robinson got almost no help
as the rest of Milwaukee's starters managed just 23 points on
9-of-28 shooting.

Neither team led by more than four points in the final period.
The Bucks' last lead came at 78-76 on a spinning layup by
Robinson with 3:44 to go, but they went cold thereafter.

On one possession, Vinny Del Negro missed two 3-pointers from
the left corner and Ray Allen missed one from the top of the
arc. After grabbing three offensive rebounds, the Bucks turned
it over and Miller got loose for a breakaway dunk that tied it
with 2:34 left.

Milwaukee's Tyrone Hill missed two free throws and Allen went
down after being poked in the eye, allowing Jalen Rose to go the
length of the court for a layup and an 80-78 lead with 2:10
left. Del Negro drove for a tying layup with 1:19 remaining.

"It was a good win; we haven't played quite that well," Pacers
coach Larry Bird said. "We got good play and hard play out of a
lot of players."

"We played hard," Allen said. "We played until the end. We did
everything we set out to do. A loose ball here or there ... it
just didn't happen."

Dale Davis scored 10 points and Smits added eight for Indiana,
which shot 44 percent (33-of-75) from the field but was beaten
on the boards, 40-38.

Rik Smits and Dale Davis scored six points apiece in the first
quarter as Indiana jumped to a 24-18 lead. Robinson got hot in
the second quarter with 13 points on 5-of-5 shooting, pulling
Milwaukee into a 45-45 halftime tie.

Miller and Robinson each scored eight points in the third
period, which ended in a 68-68 tie.